October 18, 2009

Taxpayer foots bill for BNP minder

Nick Griffin, the BNP leader, has put his personal bodyguard on the European Union payroll as his party becomes the latest to exploit the political expenses system.

A dozen senior figures from the party make up a BNP entourage of publicly funded assistants. As MEPs, Griffin and Andrew Brons are entitled to claim a combined £382,000 a year to pay for their colleagues’ salaries.

Martin Reynolds, a 20-stone bodybuilder who is head of security and Griffin’s bodyguard, said he “honestly didn’t know” why he was justified in being paid by the taxpayer. He said of his job: “I just do the security side of it and personal assistant stuff and generally looking after him and making sure things are done for him.”

Griffin and Brons are also channelling payments to other “assistants” including Simon Darby, the BNP’s deputy leader, Eddy Butler, its national organiser, Emma Colgate, its national administration officer, and a number of regional organisers and councillors. Some have not been openly declared as working for either MEP and others have unsavoury backgrounds.

Martin Wingfield, former editor of the BNP’s monthly newspaper, Voice of Freedom, is being paid as an assistant by both Griffin and Brons. He served a three-month prison sentence in the 1980s for failing to pay a fine following convictions on two counts of inciting racial hatred with election literature.

Adam Walker, head of Solidarity, the BNP’s supposed trade union, is being paid through Brons’s funds. Walker had to resign his teaching post in 2007 after being accused of posting anti-Muslim comments on the web using a school laptop.

All the BNP hierarchy’s new salaries, which go up to £25,000 a year, are allocated out of a personal £191,000 a year “assistants’ allowance” to which every MEP is entitled. EU rules state that assistants must justify their taxpayer-funded salaries by doing work which is “directly linked to the exercise of a member’s parliamentary mandate”.

John Walker, the party’s deputy press spokesman, confirmed that he was being paid £18,000 a year in taxpayers’ money. He also receives £6,000 a year from the party.

“I am expected to do two days a week for Andrew and two days a week for Nick. And then the other day . . . is for the party,” he said. Walker added that the BNP was “sensitive” to the fact that the rules emphasise all work must relate to the MEP’s role and not the party.

When Reynolds was asked what “specifically” he does for his EU salary, he said: “I honestly don’t know.”

He added: “I never got paid before, all our security was done for no payment whatsoever. I was an electrician.” He declined to say what his pay is now. He said he was not sure if he also received a salary from the party: “I don’t know the ins and outs of my finances, my wife sorts all that out.”

John Thompson, the BNP’s accountant, said the party’s MEPs were using about half their full allowances and explained that the level of salary varied. “The top level might be £25,000 and the lowest £8,000,” he said.

Walker said: “I suppose we are going to publish the breakdown [of taxpayer-funded salaries] but whether they will go as far as individual remunerations I don't know.”

Times Online

18 comments:

Anonymous said...

Edmonds of the BNP's Advisory Council spoke at a Neo-Nazi meeting in Barcelona yesterday, the topic the Nuremburg war crimes trial, the group that organised the meeting Libreria Europa is an openly Holocaust denying Neo-Nazi group run by one of Spain top racists Pedro Varela, who run a bookshop filled with books on hatred,and is a friend of David Irving, I wonder if more can be found out about this meeting and this group's activities. Edmonds is a senior member of the BNP and can be seen on the photo on their website at the last AC meeting in September, he has his back to the camera in the middle, bald with a grey suit. This should be used as ammunition against Griffin on Question Time?

http://3.bp.blogspot.com/__I4vYMAL2yQ/StiNycJfoRI/AAAAAAAAAYc/EJENXrw1_WE/s1600-h/CONFERENCIA+17+OCTUBRE2009.jpg


http://www.libreriaeuropa.es/



http://bnp.org.uk/2009/10/advisory-council-agrees-conference-resolutions/

Anonymous said...

It can be seen from this Wikipedia entry what this Spainish Neo-Nazi group is all about (it's a Spainish language entry.) Please expose them and yesterday's meeting, thanks.


http://es.wikipedia.org/wiki/Librer%C3%ADa_Europa

NewsHound said...

NAZI SALUTES AT THE WDL(EDL) FASCIST MARCH IN WALES: -

http://www.walesonline.co.uk/news/wales-news/2009/10/18/welsh-defence-league-show-true-colours-91466-24954821/

LATEST NEWS FOR YOUR BLOG, KETLAN!

West Midlands Unity said...

Hopefully this will persuade "rebel voters" that the BNP are just like any other party that has dibbled and dabbled in our (the taxpayers money). This could be used in our fight against the BNP in the run-up to the general elections

Anonymous said...

When Reynolds was asked what “specifically” he does for his EU salary, he said: “I honestly don’t know.”

Brilliant!

Presumably this will now be investigated.

Anonymous said...

Did anyone see Geiffin on Adam Boulton this morening? You can still see it, it's on a loop. He came up with the same old questions, which Griffin answered in full. When he realised he was answering 'well' he kept interupting. If that happens on Question Time it won't look good.

Anonymous said...

Why is Adam Walker, head of the BNP trade union, Squalidarity, receiving funds from the BNP?

Despite the protestions of Patrick 'Call Me Pat' Harrington and the claims of Nick Griffin, Squalidarity is nothing less than a BNP trade union, set up by the BNP, run by the BNP and for the BNP.

All their shrieks and arguments about this pretend union being an 'independent' trade union like all the other normal trade unions are turned to dust when the facts are laid bare.

the fact that Adam Walker is now on a BNP salary (paid by the porr tax-payer) is proof enough that this squalid little entity that pretends to a trade union is nothing more than BNP property and doing errands for the Big Chief, the greasy toe-rag figure of one Nick Gri££in.

Anonymous said...

Jobs for the boys. Darby gets paid from the London assembly and from the party and also from the Europe.

Its a bloody shambles how he gets a penny i dont know he is as thick as PIG SHIT.

Anonymous said...

I dunno, for me it's worth keeping Reynolds in steroids just for the thrill of seeing him wobbling excitedly 100 yards too far behind while his master is being egged.

Raymond said...

Its sad seeing that most comments and recommend comments underneath the article are pro BNP. The keyboard warriors are at work and claiming that their view represents what people are really thinking. If that was the case are the fact they only managed a 2 MEPs and handful of councillors down do "fear of the PC brigade"?

Anonymous said...

I wonder how many of these jobs for the boys were properly advertised?

Anonymous said...

There are some "interesting" pictures of Fatty Reynolds here
http://alassmithandgraham.blogspot.com/2008/01/security-lesbian-porn-scandal.html

Warning: very rude images!

Anonymous said...

That's a load of bollocks about him not being paid before now. How has he supported himself and his partner if he hasn't been paid? Benefits???

D said...

Those pictures of the fat boy are fucking gross!

Anonymous said...

Isn't Adam Walker a candidate for the BNP in the North-East? He's a BNP man thats why he is being paid by Gri££in (or the taxpayer anyway).

NewsHound said...

AN EXCELLENT ARTICLE FROM THE MERSEYSIDE COALITION AGAINST RACISM AND FASCISM: -

http://merseycarf.blogspot.com/2009/10/ooops-they-did-it-again.html

billyblue said...

For the Nick Gri££in television appearance, Cyclops is bound to claim "a moral high ground" by talking about how the BNP is not linked to the EDL when most clearly they share personnel!

Anonymous said...

@ Billyblue

He'll also try to reverse the blame for the security bill by saying he wouldn't need security were it for the murderous and unprovoked violence of the UAF, which is backed by Brown, Cameron, Huhne etc etc.

The old ones are the best!